


Ghosts in the Attic

by NotADragon



Category: Figure Skating RPF
Genre: F/M, One Shot, not spooky just fluffy, vaguely in the spirit of halloween
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-29
Updated: 2019-10-29
Packaged: 2021-01-08 06:24:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21231257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NotADragon/pseuds/NotADragon
Summary: “Don’t be ridiculous. There’s nothing wrong with this house. My realtor would have told me if there was. And besides, ghosts aren’t real.”In which Tessa might not be alone in her new home.





	Ghosts in the Attic

**Author's Note:**

> For peacefulboo.
> 
> Poor Boo has to have the same conversation with me about five times a week. It goes something like this  
Me: I'm going to write today!  
Boo: YAY!  
*12 hours later*  
Me: I did not write today :(  
Boo: That's okay.
> 
> So she deserves a fic. She's too nice to me, but I did finally get something finished!
> 
> Anyways, don't think too hard about when this fic takes place. It's not set in any particular year and is not based off any particular house, you just have to go with it. Standard apologies for writing rpf still apply.

“This has got to be one of the worst ideas you have ever had, T.”

“I don’t know why you – AHH!”

_Thunk._

Tessa’s sentence got cut off when she had to abruptly redirect all her focus into catching herself before she hit the floor face first. She just barely got her hands out in time to spare her nose.

Scott had lunged to catch her from all the way across the kitchen. He wasn’t quite in time, but he hauled her back up to her feet a moment later.

“You just proved my point.”

She opened her mouth to argue, but he stared her down, arms crossed, until she huffed and turned away. She spared a glare for the nail sticking out of the floor that had tripped her. The dusty floor had made a mess of her jeans that she aggressively brushed off.

“T, you cannot live here. This is not a home. It’s part run-down relic and part construction zone.”

Anyone else looking around the house would likely have agreed with his assessment. From the holes in the ceiling that gave glimpses of insulation and duct work to the subfloor they stood on, the house was a work in progress for sure. But it wasn’t all uninhabitable. Tessa had held off on letting work start upstairs giving her two rooms and a bathroom that were only dated as opposed to unusable. Beyond the nails, the charm of the house still shone through. The crown moulding was carefully set aside in the living room, waiting until it could go back, repainted, in its rightful place. The brick fireplace gave the space warmth even if the chimney wasn’t cleared yet for lighting an actual fire. And the stairs themselves were a work of art with carefully carved original railings being saved while the treads were restored.

“It’s fine,” she told him for the nineteenth time. “You know I don’t even use my kitchen anyways. I can live without one for six weeks.”

“Tess.”

He was about to dig in his heels, and she wasn’t in the mood. She surrendered. “Let me go grab my purse and then we can head out.”

“Wait,” he called after her as she climbed up the stairs, “I don’t even get the full tour?”

“If you wanted the tour, you shouldn’t have insulted my home.”

“Oh, c’mon!” His voice travelled easily in the echoing house.

She plucked her bag off her bed and headed back down. “Be nice next time. Right now, I’m starving. Let’s go eat.”

He grabbed her trench out of the hall closet (which was currently lacking doors) and held it for her to slip into.

“I’m driving,” he said, holding open the door for her. As if he didn’t always drive. She hadn’t even bothered to grab her car keys.

It was game night, so the pub was crowded, but they still managed to get a booth. They got their order for appetizers and drinks in just as the puck dropped. Endless commercials gave them plenty of time to chat, and Scott only slipped in one dig about her questionable property purchase. The Leafs won as Tessa finished off her second glass of wine and Scott stole the last bite of their shared brownie. With nowhere else to be, they took their time getting the bill.

Helping Tessa back into her coat, Scott let his arm stay draped across her shoulders as they headed to the door. She was feeling warm from the wine, but the cold air outside still caused her to shiver. She snuggled closer as they made their way across the parking lot.

She wasn’t in any rush to go inside when they got back. Instead, she lingered in his truck, telling him about her plans to take her niblings to a haunted house next week.

“They’ve never been, so I’ve been informed that if they end up with nightmares, I’ll be required to come over every night at bedtime to deal with it until they get past it.”

He chucked softly. “I’m sure they’ll be fine. I think I was six or seven the first year I got to go to the haunted house with my brothers at Halloween.”

“Alma let you go?”

“Nah, I think we conned a babysitter into taking us or something. She was pissed at my brothers, but she didn’t take it out on me and my newfound fear of killer clowns. But I’m sure the little ones will love the haunted house last week. I did – despite the clowns.”

In the pause that followed, the night was over, and they both knew it. She unbuckled her seatbelt, as he looked out at her new house. She had left the porch lights on and the mostly leafless trees in the front yard cast splintered shadows over the house.

“You know,” he started, “I wouldn’t be surprised if this place turned out to be haunted.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. There’s nothing wrong with this house. My realtor would have told me if there was. And besides, ghosts aren’t real.”

“First, there is plenty wrong with this house – from the questionable foundation to the even more questionable ceiling and everything in between. And second, you don’t know that ghosts aren’t real.”

She wasn’t about to have this argument again and hopped right out of the truck instead.

“Well kiddo, I had a perfectly lovely evening until you tried to ruin it by insulting my home. Goodnight. And ghosts aren’t real.”

The door slammed before she let him get a word in. He just shook his head and mouthed _Goodnight, T_. She winked back.

The house waiting for her was dark and cold. Tessa cranked the heat up and rushed upstairs. Soon, she was ensconced in an impressive pile of fluffy white and thick plaid blankets with her pajamas on, face freshly washed, and just lamp light to keep her company. With a morning alarm set for spin class, her book beckoned.

She got through a dozen pages before she heard it the first time. She didn’t think anything of it. Houses make noises – she knew that. But five pages later she heard it again. A noise. Not a creak of a house settling or groan of a furnace. A thud. Upstairs.

There was a little attic above the second floor with an entrance in ceiling of the second bedroom. Tessa hadn’t bothered to go up there. The home inspector told her it was insulated and empty, and she never thought of it again. Sliding her bookmark in, she closed her book and listened closely. There was a faint rustling sound that was definitely coming from above. Or maybe it was more of a shuffling, she thought, like someone moving around. One more thud confirmed it. She wasn’t imagining things. There was someone in her attic.

She snatched her phone off her nightstand and sent off two harried texts in quick succession.

_SOS!_

_There’s someone in my attic! Come over immediately!_

The wait for a response was near torture. The shuffling continued above, and she couldn’t ignore it. For the first time since she was twelve, she almost started biting her nails again. When her phone finally buzzed and lit up in her hand, it felt like a year had passed, not just two minutes.

_A ghost? I called it. The house is haunted._

She started tapping out another rapid message and then stopped. Instead, she hit call. It only rang once before Scott answered.

“Hey, T. So, you got a little ghost problem, huh?”

“I’m serious. I need you to come over right now. Are you on your way?”

“Woah, slow down. I’m going to come, okay?”

“Just hurry, please.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll be right there.”

“I’ll try not to get murdered before you get here. Bye”

His laugh as she hung up led her to believe he wasn’t taking this quite as seriously as she would have liked, but at least he was coming. Quietly, she tip-toed across her floor to lock her bedroom door. Then sitting cross-legged in the middle of her bed she waited nervously. Maybe she should have just called the police, but that seemed like a last resort. Scott could fix this for her.

It was just after midnight by the time she heard his truck pull into her driveway. She hurried downstairs to meet him, flicking on every light along the way. She yanked the door open before he could ring the doorbell.

“Finally!” She pulled him inside, locking the door behind him. Maybe locking the door was silly when there was already someone in her attic, but she couldn’t bear to leave it unlocked anyways.

He grinned at her, his charming, teasing smile as she turned back around. “Should I bother making the Ghostbusters’ ‘who you gonna call?’ reference, or can we skip right past that?”

She groaned. The man was ridiculous. “Come on, let’s go.”

He got his boots off, but she dragged him upstairs behind her before he had a chance to take off his jacket or drop his keys.

“Tess,” he started, as they climbed the stairs, but she shushed him immediately.

She left all the lights on. Once they got to her bedroom, she locked the door again.

“That’s an awful lot of blankets, T. Too cold all on your –”

She cut him off again. “Shush.”

Slowly, he raised is eyebrows in question. When she said nothing, he raised his hands in surrender. “Okay Tess, whatever you –”

A hand over his mouth finally silenced him.

“Shh. Just listen. Okay?”

He nodded, eyes twinkling with mirth. All was quiet above her, but she left her hand over his mouth for good measure. His hands came to rest lightly on her waist. She focused in on the ceiling and waited.

Scott managed, against his very nature, to stay quiet at her command. A minute went by and she was aware their breathing had already managed to sync up. The shuffling started again.

“Hear that?” she whispered, removing her hand.

He took his cue from her, whispering back. “Hear what?”

She pointed at the ceiling. “Listen closely.”

The shuffling was soft, but definitely there. He shrugged, not hearing what she was hearing. He just needed a little more patience.

_Thud._

“Oh my God, Tess.” His grip tightened and he pulled her into him protectively.

“See?” she whisper-yelled.

Eyes wide, he looked down at her in shock. “There really is someone in your attic.”

“You didn’t believe me?”

“No, well, it’s not uh exactly that I didn’t, um, believe you,” he stuttered pathetically and unconvincingly.

“You didn’t believe me!” She pushed back, putting a little more space between them. In her frustration, she forgot to keep her voice down. “Why not? And why on earth did you come over at midnight if you thought I was making it up?”

He froze. Red creeped into his cheeks, blushing hard in a way she hadn’t seen him blush since a particularly vicious truth or dare game as teenagers in Canton.

“Scott?”

“Can we just drop it?” he groaned. He rubbed a frustrated hand though his hair, pulling at the ends.

“No. Not until you tell me why you’ve turned into a tomato. Why would I lie about a murderer in my attic? What other reason would I have to call you to come over in the middle of the…”

As the alternate view of her summons became clear to her, Tessa took on her own shade of scarlet.

“Hey, no, stop. It’s okay.” He rubbed her shoulders, aiming for reassuring and hitting an entirely different mark, though he didn’t know it. “I’m sorry. I clearly got the wires all crossed. Just forget it, okay? Please. Let’s just deal with the immediate problem, and then tomorrow, we can pretend this never happened.”

Her brain had shorted circuited at her realization of his reasoning, and it took a minute to reboot. “A booty call? That’s what you thought this was?” She needed to make sure she actually understood what was happening right now.

“Again, I’m really sorry, T.”

She took that as an affirmative confirmation. He started to talk again, but she shook her head. She needed a minute to think. He took the cue but plucked at his nailbeds nervously while trying to watch the gears spin behind her eyes.

With a deep breath, she composed herself. “But you showed up?”

She tried to school her features, not wanting to give anything away as she wasn’t even sure of herself yet, but he knew her too well. He could read the tension in her shoulders and forehead. It was subtle, but there.

“Yeah. I did.”

Interesting. Very interesting. She nodded slowly, taking it in.

“We had a good time at dinner,” he expanded. “It was really nice, Tess. And I thought you thought so too. I think I should probably go now though.” He gave her a soft smile to tell her that everything would be okay. But he forgot the most obvious thing.

She pointed up at the ceiling. “So, you’re just going to leave me here with the ghost of an axe murderer in my attic?”

“Right,” he groaned. “I forgot. Probably either just a ghost or just an axe murderer. But frankly Tess, I don’t think I can fix either of those things myself. I’m not the nightgown lady and I won’t win against an axe.”

She giggled, breaking the tension that had lingered over them. “Melinda. Her name was Melinda. God, yeah Jennifer Love Hewitt really did wear a lot of nightgowns in that show. I can’t believe you remember that.”

“You made me watch so much of it with you when we first moved to Canton. And I remember everything.”

Those had been good days. In the quiet moment, thinking of teenaged weeknights curled up on the couch with him, the level of quiet became clearer.

“I don’t hear anything. Do you?”

Scott tilted his hear to listen. “No. Do you?”

She shook her head. “I wonder if our voices scared off the murderer?”

“We could have, yeah. Do you want me to stay for a few more minutes to make sure?”

“If you don’t mind?”

When he nodded, Tessa gestured towards her bed. There was no point in standing around while they waited to see if the ghost would reappear. Stepping lightly across the room, she crawled back into her nest of blankets. They were cozily arranged before she realized she was still alone. Instead of following her, Scott had opted to lean against her dresser. She rolled her eyes.

“Don’t be silly.” She patted the space beside her on the bed.

Giving in, he took up a spot on the bed – right on the very edge of it, a hairsbreadth away from falling off the side, back straight up against the tufted headboard. He left her all of the other 90% of the king size bed. She tried not to show her disappointment, but she also wasn’t willing to let it go without comment.

“This doesn’t have to be weird now, does it?” she asked.

The blush crept back into his cheeks. “I just want you to be comfortable. I think I’ve made enough assumptions for one night already.”

“Let’s just be _us_, okay?” The concept of ‘us’ encompassed more than they could ever find the words for, but they both knew what it felt like and when it was off. While the feeling had been off for a while, they had found their way back in the past few months, and she didn’t want to lose it again.

The tension drained out of his shoulders as he relaxed and scooted in, away from the edge of the edge of the bed. “Yeah, that sounds good.”

Her hand found his as she sat back beside him, pulling her pile of blankets with her.

In the middle of the night, in a mostly empty, old house, it felt like they had stumbled into a rare stolen moment. The type not intended by the universe and all the more precious for it. The quiet that fell over them was comfortable as they both consciously put aside anything that would wreck it. Tessa’s head eventually fell to a comfortable spot leaning against Scott’s shoulder. If it wasn’t for the bright lights and the switch all the way across the room, she could have fallen asleep instantly.

“Whatever it was seems to be gone now.” She had let the moment last for much longer than needed to confirm that fact. She might have felt bad about stretching it out, but she didn’t tango alone, and he hadn’t spoke up sooner either.

He gave her hand squeeze. “Are you going to be okay sleeping her tonight, or are you still spooked? You’re welcome to come sleep at my place if you’re worried that it will start up again. I’ll come back in the morning and check it out in the daylight for you.”

She looked up at him to find he already had his eyes closed. “Would you stay with me tonight?” That got his attention. “It’s late. It’ll save you the drive and I won’t be spooked if you’re here with me.”

His pause at her request didn’t worry her and his eventual response rewarded her patience.

“Do you need to get up for anything or should I just turn off the lights?”

“I’m good,” she said.

He took the opportunity to finally take off his jacket. With him beside her, she knew she needed significantly less blankets and passed him half of her pile to put on her chair. For once, she was content to sleep on top of her duvet, rather than bothering to crawl underneath.

Scott turned back to her, waiting for her sign off to flick the lights. In the dark, he found his place next to her, their hands slotting back together. She pulled the blankets up over both of them as they settled in.

“Thanks for coming over tonight.” No longer afraid of a ghost upstairs, she still whispered anyways in the dark.

“Don’t worry about it.”

“No, really. Thanks.”

His lips brushed the crown of her head. “Always, T.”

She could have left it there. The safe choice would have been to leave it, to sleep, to keep things as they were.

“You didn’t misread everything by the way.”

She felt his sharp intake of breath. “I didn’t?” His voice had dropped an octave.

“Dinner was good tonight. It wasn’t just you. I felt it too.”

His nose brushed against hers as they bridged the little space between them.

“I’m not sure if your only interested if it’s a late night, one-time thing or…” There was so much in the other option. The big option. The monumental one. The complete opposite of a booty call based on a fake crisis that he thought he was answering. The other option held a world of unknowns and change, and she understood if he wasn’t up for going down that road.

He didn’t hesitate. “Or. I’m definitely interested in ‘or…’.”

She didn’t hesitate either. Her lips found his with just a tilt of her head. And it felt right. They fit together and moved together as she pulled him closer and her leg slotted between his. His hands mapped her body that he already knew so well. There was no urgency, but the heat was almost overwhelming. He let her take the lead as she shifted on top of him. The languid kisses could have lasted all night, stimulating both of them despite the late hour.

Tessa knew they should probably talk more about what ‘or…’ consisted of. She hadn’t expected her night to take this turn. With a hand pressed against his heart, she trailed kisses down his neck, as far as his shirt would let her. And then she took the break to slide back beside him. He brushed her hair back out her face, tucking it futilely behind her ear. Nose to nose, he was content to trace his fingertips over her back, taking in the moment.

“I wish you liked my house.”

“What?” He was slow to switch gears. It all seemed so interconnected to her, the whole day, that it wasn’t really a conversation change at all from the kissing to this.

“I was really excited to show you my house. I wanted you to like it.”

“I’m sorry, T.” He kissed the spot right behind her ear, the one that he instinctively knew could make her swoon. “I do like it.”

One kiss was not enough to convince her. “There’s good parts to it,” she insisted. “You just need to give me some time and you’ll see. It’s not going to be a run-down relic and construction zone forever. Just have a little faith in me. It’s going to be really nice when it’s done.”

“I have all the faith in the world in you. Tess, you constantly amaze me with everything you do that no one else ever could. I was just teasing earlier. And looking out for you. But I know that’ll the house will be perfect when you’re done with it, and I’m sorry I didn’t make you feel that way earlier.”

Her heart swelled. His sincerity was the sweetest thing. “Thank you.”

Grabbing a handful of his t-shirt, she pulled him back to her for another long kiss.

“I promise I like your home,” he said when they broke apart. “Ghosts and all, it’s perfect for you.”

She laughed and could feel him smile back at her against her cheek. “We’ll do an exorcism in the morning.”

It wasn’t long before the eventful night caught up to them. Sleep found them easily in the quiet house.

Her alarm went off at the originally scheduled time, but Tessa’s plans had changed. Spin class seemed very skippable in the cozy morning embrace of blankets and familiar arms. She dismissed the alarm, not bothering to set another.

When she woke the second time, the sun had risen, giving a warm glow to the room. She found herself nose to nose with Scott, his eyes looking right back at hers.

“Morning,” he whispered. He tilted his head to drop a little kiss on the tip of her nose.

She hummed contentedly in response, nuzzling closer. Her foot brushed against the jeans he was still wearing. In a perfect world, she would tell him to lose the jeans, and she wouldn’t have had any reason to leave the bed for another hour or so. But not everything could be perfect.

The shuffling sound was back.

The realization caused her to start, tensing up against Scott.

“Tess?”

“Listen.”

He heard it immediately this time. “Oh shit.”

It wasn’t long before they heard a _thud_, making last night’s original issue impossible to ignore in the light of day.

“Do you have a flashlight?” he asked.

“It’s in the drawer beside the stove.”

“Where’s your attic access?”

“Other bedroom, just across the hall.”

He climbed out of bed, stretching until his back cracked.

“Okay, just in case I die up there, I love you. Hopefully Casper is friendly, but if I die, go on Oprah and tell the world I loved kittens.”

“Can’t. That’s not on the air anymore,” she teased.

“Ellen. CBC. Whatever.” He leaned down for a quick kiss before yelling up at the ceiling. “Hey! We’re going to call the cops if you don’t get out of this house!”

There was no response.

He shrugged. While he headed down to the kitchen, Tessa rolled across the bed to grab her phone. She told herself it was just to check the time, but it didn’t hurt to have it handy if she heard any screaming.

“Okay, headed up there now,” he said, popping his head back in the door.

She could still hear the shuffling until the creak of the attic hatch drowned it out. Seconds later, the hatch slammed closed. She bolted upright, clutching her phone, and Scott burst back into her room.

“What happened?”

He dropped to the floor and pulled her suitcase out from where she always kept it under the bed.

“We’re leaving,” was all the answer she got.

He pulled open her dresser drawers and started throwing things into her suitcase. If she hadn’t been so surprised, she definitely would have taken issue with his manhandling of her clothes.

“What? What was it? Is there actually a person up there?”

He shook his head, onto the third drawer.

“What on earth are you doing? Scott! Stop! Is there an actual ghost in my attic?”

“Worse.” He turned to her, his face ashen. He hip-checked the last drawer closed. “You’re staying with me until further notice.” He had her suitcase in one hand and held the other out to her. “Let’s go.”

“But what’s in my attic?”

“Raccoons.”

**Author's Note:**

> It may not seem like I'm around, but I kinda am, and you can always find me over on tumblr:  
https://obviouslynotadragon.tumblr.com/


End file.
